Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026
the Third Week after Easter
Attention!
Tired of seeing ads while studying? Now you can enjoy an "Ads Free" version of the site for as little as 10¢ a day and support a great cause!
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Joshua 17:17

Joshua said to the family of Joseph (to Ephraim and Manasseh): "Yes, there are a lot of you, and you are very strong. One lot is not enough for you. You also get the hill country. It's nothing but trees now, but you will clear the land and make it your own from one end to the other. The powerful Canaanites, even with their iron chariots, won't stand a chance against you."

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Avarice;   Canaanites;   Cowardice;   Ephraim;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Samaria, Ancient;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ephraim;   Joshua the son of nun;   Manasseh, tribe of;   Palestine;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Ephraim, the Tribe of;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Ephraim (1);   Forest;   Harosheth of the Gentiles;   Perizzite;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ephraim, Forest of;   Forest;   Joshua, the Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Israel;   Joshua;   Manasseh;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Lots;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Perizzites ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Manasseh;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Conquest of Canaan;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Botany;   Joshua, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Ephraim;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
So Joshua replied to Joseph’s family (that is, Ephraim and Manasseh), “You have many people and great strength. You will not have just one allotment,
Hebrew Names Version
Yehoshua spoke to the house of Yosef, even to Efrayim and to Menashsheh, saying, You are a great people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only:
King James Version
And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only:
Lexham English Bible
And Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, "You are many people and have great power; you will not have one allotment only;
English Standard Version
Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, "You are a numerous people and have great power. You shall not have one allotment only,
New Century Version
Then Joshua said to the people of Joseph—to Ephraim and Manasseh, "There are many of you, and you have great power. You should be given more than one share of land.
New English Translation
Joshua said to the family of Joseph—to both Ephraim and Manasseh: "You have many people and great military strength. You will not have just one tribal allotment.
Amplified Bible
Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have only one lot,
New American Standard Bible
But Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,
Geneva Bible (1587)
And Ioshua spake vnto the house of Ioseph, to Ephraim, and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power, and shalt not haue one lot.
Legacy Standard Bible
Then Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,
Contemporary English Version
"Your tribes do have a lot of people," Joshua admitted. "I'll give you more land. Your tribes are powerful,
Complete Jewish Bible
Then Y'hoshua said to the house of Yosef, to both Efrayim and M'nasheh, "You are a great people with much power; you will not have only one lot,
Darby Translation
And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only,
Easy-to-Read Version
Then Joshua said to the people of Joseph, the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, "You have many people and you are very strong, so you should get more than one share of the land.
George Lamsa Translation
Then Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, You are a numerous people, and have a great power; if one portion is not enough for you,
Good News Translation
Joshua said to the tribes of Ephraim and West Manasseh, "There are indeed many of you, and you are very powerful. You shall have more than one share.
Literal Translation
And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, You are a numerous people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Iosua sayde vnto the house of Ioseph, euen to Ephraim and Manasses: Thou art a greate people, & for so moch as thou art so greate, thou must not haue one lot,
American Standard Version
And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power; thou shalt not have one lot only:
Bible in Basic English
Then Joshua said to the children of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, You are a great people, and have great power: you are not to have one property only,
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Iasuah sayde vnto the house of Ioseph, Ephraim, & Manasses: Ye be much people, and haue great power, and shall not therfore haue one lotte.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Joshua spoke unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying: 'Thou art a great people, and hast great power; thou shalt not have one lot only;
King James Version (1611)
And Ioshua spake vnto the house of Ioseph, euen to Ephraim, and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: Thou shalt not haue one lot onely.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Joshua said to the sons of Joseph, If thou art a great people, and hast great strength, thou shalt not have only one inheritance.
English Revised Version
And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only:
Berean Standard Bible
So Joshua said to the house of Joseph-to Ephraim and Manasseh-"You have many people and great strength. You shall not have just one allotment,
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Josue seide to the hows of Joseph, and of Effraym, and of Manasses, Thou art myche puple, and of greet strengthe; thou schalt not haue o lot,
Young's Literal Translation
And Joshua speaketh unto the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, `Thou [art] a numerous people, and hast great power; thou hast not one lot [only],
Update Bible Version
And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, You are a great people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only:
Webster's Bible Translation
And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, [even] to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou [art] a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot [only]:
World English Bible
Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, You are a great people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only:
New King James Version
And Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph--to Ephraim and Manasseh--saying, "You are a great people and have great power; you shall not have only one lot,
New Living Translation
Then Joshua said to the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, the descendants of Joseph, "Since you are so large and strong, you will be given more than one portion.
New Life Bible
Then Joshua said to the families of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, "You have many people and much power. You will not have only one share of land.
New Revised Standard
Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, "You are indeed a numerous people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Joshua made answer unto the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, - A numerous people, thou art, and, great vigour, thou hast, thou shalt not have one lot only;
Douay-Rheims Bible
And Josue said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasses: Thou art a great people, and of great strength, thou shalt not have one lot only:
Revised Standard Version
Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to E'phraim and Manas'seh, "You are a numerous people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, saying, "You are a numerous people and have great power; you shall not have one lot only,

Contextual Overview

14 The people of Joseph spoke to Joshua: "Why did you give us just one allotment, one solitary share? There are a lot of us, and growing— God has extravagantly blessed us." 15 Joshua responded, "Since there are so many of you, and you find the hill country of Ephraim too confining, climb into the forest and clear ground there for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim." 16 But the people of Joseph said, "There's not enough hill country for us; and the Canaanites who live down in the plain, both those in Beth Shan and its villages and in the Valley of Jezreel, have iron chariots." 17Joshua said to the family of Joseph (to Ephraim and Manasseh): "Yes, there are a lot of you, and you are very strong. One lot is not enough for you. You also get the hill country. It's nothing but trees now, but you will clear the land and make it your own from one end to the other. The powerful Canaanites, even with their iron chariots, won't stand a chance against you."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Thou art a great: Joshua 17:14

Reciprocal: Genesis 48:16 - a multitude

Cross-References

Genesis 17:3
Overwhelmed, Abram fell flat on his face. Then God said to him, "This is my covenant with you: You'll be the father of many nations. Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham, meaning that ‘I'm making you the father of many nations.' I'll make you a father of fathers—I'll make nations from you, kings will issue from you. I'm establishing my covenant between me and you, a covenant that includes your descendants, a covenant that goes on and on and on, a covenant that commits me to be your God and the God of your descendants. And I'm giving you and your descendants this land where you're now just camping, this whole country of Canaan, to own forever. And I'll be their God."
Genesis 17:19
But God said, "That's not what I mean. Your wife, Sarah, will have a baby, a son. Name him Isaac (Laughter). I'll establish my covenant with him and his descendants, a covenant that lasts forever.
Genesis 17:20
"And Ishmael? Yes, I heard your prayer for him. I'll also bless him; I'll make sure he has plenty of children—a huge family. He'll father twelve princes; I'll make him a great nation. But I'll establish my covenant with Isaac whom Sarah will give you about this time next year."
Numbers 14:5
Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in front of the entire community, gathered in emergency session.
Numbers 16:22
They threw themselves on their faces and said, "O God, God of everything living, when one man sins are you going to take it out on the whole community?"
Deuteronomy 9:18
Then I prostrated myself before God , just as I had at the beginning of the forty days and nights. I ate no food; I drank no water. I did this because of you, all your sins, sinning against God , doing what is evil in God 's eyes and making him angry. I was terrified of God 's furious anger, his blazing anger. I was sure he would destroy you. But once again God listened to me. And Aaron! How furious he was with Aaron—ready to destroy him. But I prayed also for Aaron at that same time.
Deuteronomy 9:25
When I was on my face, prostrate before God those forty days and nights after God said he would destroy you, I prayed to God for you, "My Master, God , don't destroy your people, your inheritance whom, in your immense generosity, you redeemed, using your enormous strength to get them out of Egypt.
Joshua 5:14
He said, "Neither. I'm commander of God 's army. I've just arrived." Joshua fell, face to the ground, and worshiped. He asked, "What orders does my Master have for his servant?"
Joshua 7:6
Joshua ripped his clothes and fell on his face to the ground before the Chest of God , he and the leaders throwing dirt on their heads, prostrate until evening.
1 Chronicles 21:16
David, Satan, and Araunah Now Satan entered the scene and seduced David into taking a census of Israel. David gave orders to Joab and the army officers under him, "Canvass all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and get a count of the population. I want to know the number." Joab resisted: "May God multiply his people by hundreds! Don't they all belong to my master the king? But why on earth would you do a thing like this—why risk getting Israel into trouble with God?" But David wouldn't take no for an answer, so Joab went off and did it—canvassed the country and then came back to Jerusalem and reported the results of the census: There were 1,100,000 fighting men; of that total, Judah accounted for 470,000. Joab, disgusted by the command—it, in fact, turned his stomach!—protested by leaving Levi and Benjamin out of the census-taking. And God, offended by the whole thing, punished Israel. Then David prayed, "I have sinned badly in what I have just done, substituting statistics for trust; forgive my sin—I've been really stupid." God answered by speaking to Gad, David's pastor: "Go and give David this message: ‘ God 's word: You have your choice of three punishments; choose one and I'll do the rest.'" Gad delivered the message to David: "Do you want three years of famine, three months of running from your enemies while they chase you down, or three days of the sword of God —an epidemic unleashed on the country by an angel of God ? Think it over and make up your mind. What shall I tell the One who sent me?" David told Gad, "They're all terrible! But I'd rather be punished by God whose mercy is great, than fall into human hands." So God unleashed an epidemic in Israel—seventy thousand Israelites died. God then sent the angel to Jerusalem but when he saw the destruction about to begin, he compassionately changed his mind and ordered the death angel, "Enough's enough! Pull back!" The angel of God had just reached the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David looked up and saw the angel hovering between earth and sky, sword drawn and about to strike Jerusalem. David and the elders bowed in prayer and covered themselves with rough burlap.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, [even] to Ephraim and to Manasseh,.... From whence it is clear that some of both were present; and they being brethren, and their interests united, and their cities intermixed, it would be to their mutual advantage to have an enlargement; which the tribe of Manasseh wanted more especially, more of their cities that fell to their lot being in the hands of the Canaanites, than of any other:

saying, thou [art] a great people, and hast great power; were very numerous, and so able to contend with the Canaanites, and make themselves more room:

thou shalt not have one lot [only]; or only have what they were possessed of, but should have more; and, as they wanted more, they were able enough to get more; and if they exerted their power, relying on the providence of God, through his blessing on their endeavours, they would certainly have an increase of their portion.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Thou shalt not have one lot only - i. e. by dispossessing the Canaanites, thou shalt double the portion of land at thy disposal. The “but” with which the King James Version begins Joshua 17:18 should be “for.”


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile